"If you cannot convince them, confuse them."
- Harry S. Truman
Sadly, that is exactly what most web sites do. How and why a web site will be used is often an afterthought -- or worse, an assumption -- because the development process is usually inward looking, focused on the organization rather than the end user.
Of course, most online customers and users don't give a rodent's behind about how your organization works, and they shouldn't need to.
The solution is to incorporate usability testing into the development process from start to finish, beginning with the rough prototype. This does not require a pointless attempt at statistical representation of your user community. The idea is to get instinctive, unbiased reactions to your output and iterate rapidly, improving constantly.
And usability testing doesn't have to be complicated, time-consuming or expensive. A group of three to five people together for 90 minutes will usually do the trick.
